Breathing Meditation: Radio Interview with Swami Prajnanananda Giri

By Radio Interview with Swami Prajnanananda Giri

Breathing Meditation: Radio Interview with Swami Prajnanananda Giri

This is a transcription of an interview with Swami Praj–anananda Giri for the "PhenomeNews" radio program in Detroit, USA, in December 1996.

Interviewer: Swamiji, you have quite a diverse background. You were born in India and you were actually a Professor in Economics before you started the spiritual path. At what moment did you realized that being a professor wasnÕt what you wanted to do?

Swami Prajnanananda Giri: Actually, I have been spiritual since childhood. From when I was young, I began searching for a master who could guide me in the path of love, truth, and spirituality. Eventually, I found my master, under whom I studied, meditated, and tried to realize the truth of all religions-the truth of life, the love, the basic principle of life-by practicing the technique of Kriya Yoga that he taught me. So it was not an accident; rather, my search was a spontaneous and continuous way through which I exercised the impetus to find my master and to find my way to walk in that path.

Interviewer: How did you know that your master was your master when you found him?

Swami Prajnanananda Giri: It is very interesting. I used to visit many masters, really searching out who was truly my guide. So when I met my true master, I was able to judge, through the course of my association with him, that he was the real guide who could help me to develop myself and proceed in the path of love and spirituality. So, finding my master was a careful choice that was made in accordance with the love and blessing of God.

Interviewer: Swamiji, why would someone need a master, a guru? Could they not meditate on their own?

Swami Prajnanananda Giri: We learn everything from somebody-a teacher, a guide. When you learned to read and write, did you not have a guide who taught you? Similarly, in the path of spirituality, it is better to have a guide who can lead you. Even Jesus had a guide-John the Baptist. Jesus guided his 12 disciples and many more. In every spiritual path, in every religion, there is the need for a guide. A guide knows the goal; a guide has reached the goal. The guide says, "This is the goal-come with me. I can take you."

Interviewer: What is the difference between a "master", a "guru" and a "swami"?

Swami Prajnanananda Giri: "Guru" is a Sanskrit word that actually means "one who is a realized master." A guru is the master who has realized the truth, especially one who has realized the truth by following the yogic path and who has obtained the pulseless and breathless state of nirvikalpa samadhi. In the Bible, you will find written, "Every day I die," which means that "every day I go to that state when there is no pulse, no breath." A master is one who has thorough control over his mind, breathing system, and, in fact, all the systems of his body. He is one who is simultaneously and constantly conscious of his inner Self and God. In the Indian language, there is "guru" and there is "acharya." An acharya is the teacher, and guru is the master, the realized one; the enlightened one. So, although teachers may be many, masters are few. A swami may be a master, and a teacher, as well as a student.

Interviewer: Did your guru know Paramahamsa Yogananda, author of Autobiography of a Yogi?

Swami Prajnanananda Giri: Yes, my master was also a student of Paramahamsa Yogananda. Paramahamsa Yogananadaji and my master were both students and disciples of Swami Shriyukteshwar. But, later on, my master learned some higher Kriya Yoga techniques from Paramahamsa Yogananadaji.

Interviewer: Swamiji, is your guru still alive?

Swami Prajnanananda Giri: Yes, he is 89 years young. and has traveled all over the world: America, Europe, Australia, and South America. Even now his brain is efficient, perfect, and working with all physical capabilities. He has strength of body, mind, and spirit, and he is still working with and guiding people. And he had his state of no pulse, no breath, where a doctor declared that he was clinically dead. But, after a while, he came back. It is a rare chance to see such a master who has thorough control over all the activities of the body. He is touring everywhere, so people can contact him and get information, and they can see such a man who has obtained this state, and has this type of brain. Even if he is nearly 90 years old.

Interviewer: And now you follow the same teachings as your master?

Swami Prajnanananda Giri: Yes, for the last 16 years I have practiced the same technique, and for the last 5-6 years I have been teaching this technique to people: first in India, now in the West, in America and also in Europe.

Interviewer: There is a peacefulness in your eyes, a centeredness about you. Do you attribute this to your masterÕs teachings?

Swami Prajnanananda Giri: The technique, which we practice and teach, is a technique based on breath control. Breath regulates the human life. When one is angry, there is one type of breathing; when one is full of emotion, there is another type of breathing. When one is full of fear-anxiety-the breathing is different. Suppose a candle is burning. If there is wind, the flame will be very disturbed. Yet, when there is no wind, the air is still there. So, the flame is very steady, one-pointed. Similarly, if one understands how to regulate the breath, he can regulate the mind.

People do not know about the value of breath. In the yogic scripture it is said that human life is determined by how many breaths one takes. One who is angry or emotional breathes perhaps 20-25 times a minute. An average human breathes about 15 times a minute, and those who practice meditation can breathe even less. This does not occur through effort, but rather through a little bit of inner awareness. Through meditation, the breath becomes very slow. When the breath is restless, the mind is restless. Breath-awareness means God-awareness. God is breathing. When one knows the technique of how to regulate the breath, and in every breath to perceive the presence of God who is full of love, then life will be peaceful, loving, and calm. In fact, he can regulate life and acquire constant calmness and peace. Such a state can be constantly perceived through meditation and daily practice.

Interviewer: Is there any significance in us eating certain foods to maintain this state of calmness?

Swami Prajnanananda Giri: In the Bible it is written that the kingdom of heaven is not a question of eating and drinking. A weak person can not eat everything, a strong person can eat and digest everything. It is written in the Bible, and in the Bhagavad Gita, that food should be moderate. God has created every type of food; you should take food in moderation, moderate quantity. A balanced diet and taken in a regulated way, at regulated intervals will give you good health. If one is a vegetarian-good. But if one inwardly wants non-vegetarian food, and is trying forcefully to be vegetarian, this is not good. When one practices meditation and one can hear his inner conscience, one will know what is oneÕs own food.

Interviewer: Is there any sort of mystical teachings or any sort of studying that a person has to do, like read the scriptures or the vedic texts or anything to learn this Kriya YogaÕ?

Swami Prajnanananda Giri: I generally say, "If you are a Christian, read the Bible; if you are a Hindu, you may read the Bhagavad Gita; if you are a Muslim you should read Koran," and through the meditation and teaching of Kriya Yoga you will understand your own scripture better. You will realize that what your "son of God" or "prophet" or any "master" is teaching is common to all, there is no difference. We all are children of God and we should perceive GodÕs love. There is no difference in anything. So, it is best to avoid insisting, "read only this!" Read any scripture that you love. But, try not to read too much. Read a little, and, through meditation, apply what you read in your daily life. Application is more essential than reading, because spirituality is beyond intellectual development. You must have both theory and practice in the application of scripture in your daily life. That will help you to lead a life of love, purity, and truth.

Interviewer: Are there any "blocks" that a person has to remove? Suppose they already have a belief-system?

Swami Prajnanananda Giri: Kriya Yoga does not present any obstacle to oneÕs own belief; rather, Kriya makes oneÕs belief stronger. We live in this world, but our belief is not strong. We believe in many things, but we do not believe in our own Self. We do not believe in our breath, which circulates day and night, and because of which we are alive. Belief is love. Love is belief.

Interviewer: Can this be taught in a weekend or does it take longer?

Swami Prajnanananda Giri: When learning the technique we help the student to perceive that light, sound, and pulsation-vibration. Then, we teach the technique. One will hear the sound, an inner voice. If you read the Bible, John 1:1 "In the beginning there was word and the word was with God, and that word is God". One can hear the inner voice in Kriya Yoga and one can see light, the light of the third eye or divine light. In Matthew 6:22 it is written "If therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light". One can see the light. So, before teaching Kriya Yoga, we help the student to perceive light, sound, and pulsation in the whole body. Then we teach Kriya Yoga. One should come to at least 2-3 guided meditations to perfect the technique, then one can practice at home. Later, if the student has any doubt, he or she can contact us and ask. Also, in Kriya Yoga there are no dangerous missteps or side effects. In some other yogic techniques, if the practitioner performs the technique incorrectly, there may be some difficulties, but Kriya Yoga is free from that type of hardship. So, if an individual practices with the teachers 2-3 times the first weekend, he or she can later practice the technique at home. But initiation is just an introduction into the practice of Kriya Yoga.

Interviewer: Do you have to perform it daily in order to maintain it? How long do you meditate each day?

Swami Prajnanananda Giri: Yes. Just as every day we eat food to maintain the body, we should similarly meditate daily, giving time for our inner Self, for God. Ten or fifteen minutes every day are enough. There is no need to meditate too much.

In particular, I myself work every day, nearly 18-19 hours. Through continuous meditation, one can be aware of God, the soul, the spirit within, such that even while working-while I am talking to you-I am conscious of Him, who is talking through this mouth, as I am not a mere machine. So, I can tell you that I am meditating 24 hours. In this modern world, people have much less time. The techniques can be done in 10 minutes a day, if done with concentration and love.

In GodÕs world everything is possible. The truth is within you and you are to perceive it. Those who practice Kriya Yoga, they can perceive that sound, vibration and light of different color every day. Every substance has light, every substance is just a condensed form of light. So every human being is also radiating light, and in every human being there is light. Jesus said "I am the light of God. I am the light of the world." Jesus is not the man of flesh and blood. Jesus is within you. You are to see that light. And if you go inside and practice the Kriya Yoga technique you can see the light. If you practice Kriya Yoga, you can see many colors of light coming and going and many inner experiences within yourself. It is always there.

Interviewer: Did Jesus do Kriya?

Swami Prajnanananda Giri: Jesus did some technique like Kriya Yoga. We do not know if Jesus actually performed Kriya or not, but I have thoroughly studied and meditated upon the teachings of Jesus and I understand that what he was teaching was quite similar to the technique of Kriya Yoga. If one practices Kriya Yoga daily, one will enjoy good health, calmness of mind, good intellect, and intelligence. At the same time one will be conscious of his inner Self and the supreme spirit, God.

If you read the Bible, Genesis 1:27, 2:7, and 5:l, you will find that God made you and me in His image, and He is breathing the breath of life through the nostrils of every living being. So we are alive and we are the Soul. The breath of men is the breath of God. Without breath there is death. We are alive by the love of God, and breath is the love of God. If one perceives GodÕs love through every breath, his life will be full of love. Those who practice meditation feel it. So Kriya Yoga gives you all round development. If you practice Hatha Yoga, you will get good health. Raja Yoga teaches only breathing techniques so it will improve your concentration. Kriya Yoga aims at simultaneous development of body, mind, intellect and soul.

Interviewer: Swamiji, is there an easy technique that you could give to our listeners, where they could experience a little of this breathing technique, or at least calming?

Swami Prajnanananda Giri: Thank you for your question. IÕll be happy to tell a simple technique that anybody can practice at any time. It is the practice of watching the breath. Breath is going in and coming out day and night. The yogis say a normal average human being breathes 21,600 times over a 24-hour period. One should be a little bit conscious of each breath going in and coming out, and make each breath a little longer, and in every breath feel that it is the love of God. Without breath one will die. In every breath, one should mentally perceive that it is the love of God, He is breathing-God is breathing. Through that one will get calmness. One can do it in any easy posture, sitting on a chair, waiting in the railway station, or in the airport, working in the office. Or even while talking to friends. I am talking to you, I am conscious of breath. It is very easy technique, one can do it, but at the same time it is good. They can come and learn the complete technique, which will give all-round development. It is a very easy, simple technique. Anybody can practice above the age of 13.

Interviewer: Could someone do this techniques if they were bed-ridden, if they were very ill?

SPG: Yes. One should perceive GodÕs presence at any time, no question of in which stage or which age one is-old or young-no matter. To love God there is no question of time, no question of age, so this meditation is for all. Anybody can practice it, even if one is on the bed. And another thing: if one knows the technique, what to do and how to do it, even they can be free from many diseases. One can perceive constant calmness, and he will not be disturbed, even if there is some pain of the body, but he can be free of the pain. It depends upon the practice and how much one is practicing with love.

Interviewer: What do you recommend for people that are trying to meditate but canÕt turn off the mind?

Swami Prajnanananda Giri: You see, the real meaning of meditation is to go beyond mind. People think that they are practicing meditation. But if they ask their own conscience, they can easily know, that mind is playing the trick. And if one learns this Kriya Yoga technique, one can easily tune the mind from the restless world to the peaceful inner world. It is possible. The technique is essential. If you sit in the car with eyes closed and folded hands and you say "O car please run," the car will not run. There is a technique to driving the car. Similarly meditation is a technique by which you can drive your restless mind to a calm, peaceful state. It is possible through Kriya technique. One should learn it. It is a scientific technique, so that is why you need a guide, a teacher. It is not possible to learn by reading books. It is very easy to learn directly in a short time.

Interviewer: Swamiji, I noticed that you have a red dot on your forehead. What is the third eye, and what does the red dot signify?

Swami Prajnanananda Giri: Beautiful question. If you remember, I quoted the Bible previously-Matthew 6:26: "If your eye will be single, your whole body will be full of light". How do you make the eye single? God has given us two eyes, and two eyes create duality. We always see good and bad, winter and summer, friend and foe; but in everything there is one unity. That unity is the third eye-represented by the red dot-which is within you. The third eye symbolizes the soul, the spirit within. One should concentrate and meditate inside. In the Gospels, Jesus said: "One should carry his cross and follow me!" Which cross should people carry? This cross is a juncture-point of the spine and the brain. It is just from this midpoint of eyebrows inside, there is the cross. "You should carry your own cross and follow me" means you should go inside and follow Christ, who is within you. Christ is immortal. Christ is not dead. That consciousness is within you. Monk-yogis usually apply a red dot in between the eyebrows symbolizing the third eye to perceive this. The third eye is the eye of Christ-consciousness, God-consciousness and soul-consciousness - Hindus may call it Krishna-consciousness. Also if you look at the sun in the sky, when the sun is rising it is a red round point, a ball. The same sun, the soul-sun is within you. The red dot is a physical mark to help you to remember that the soul-sun is within you. Because of the soul-sun there is light, life, within you.

Interviewer: What is the significance of the color orange or peach such as you are wearing?.

Swami Prajnanananda Giri: It has many meanings. The monks in India, those who have renounced the so-called family life or worldly life, put on this colored cloth. It symbolizes fire. When there is fire, it burns everything. Similarly, this color is a reminder that a monk should always be aware of spirit, not only the body. The body is burnt with fire, and he is always conscious of truth, the spirit within. That is the spiritual fire. To maintain the fire, there should be oxygen. Without oxygen the candle will not burn. To maintain the inner fire-the holy fire-we need oxygen, the breath. And because of that breath the body is staying warm. The fire is warm so the whole body is warm. We do not perceive the fire of God, which is within us, through every breath we should love that fire. This is our life. These are out activities of the body. So this is also the same-Kriya Yoga.

Interviewer: Swamiji, you have been doing this, you said, for 16 years. How have you seen spirituality change in that time, how have you seen peopleÕs interest in that side of our nature-change or grow?

Swami Prajnanananda Giri: It is a beautiful question. This world is growing so fast, "world" in the sense of "the consciousness of people." And people are growing more spiritual day by day. They are leaning towards inner peace, inner and outer harmony. This is what I feel, what I perceive. I saw it in India. I saw it Europe. I see it here in America. More and more people are after love, peace, and truth. It is my conviction, my understanding and my perception that people are growing more spiritual day by day.

Interviewer: Swamiji, if we practice Kriya Yoga, can we extend that out into the world to see a vision of world peace, to see things coming together in unity and to hold a different vision of the world?

Swami Prajnanananda Giri: You see, God is the unity and we all are the multiplicity. There is one God, and we are His children. In all of us one spirit is remaining. We are breathing the same air, the same breath, and the same power of God. And those who meditate-practice this Kriya Yoga, when they perceive the Truth within, they can perceive truth outside in every human being. We are born not to quarrel, not to fight, riot, or to bring war, but to bring peace. Peace in your inner life; peace in your daily life, and that peace we can radiate everywhere. The world is peaceful. But, when people do not understand they are deviated, they quarrel. There are troubles, unhappiness, worries in daily, human life. But when they meditate, go a little inside, they can see that we are born to love. This is possible and it can bring the peace everywhere. But first you must find peace in yourself. Through your peace you can radiate peace to others. If you have money in the pocket, you can give to others-so earn the money first. In the material world people are busy earning and spending money. Similarly people should be aware of Ôspiritual moneyÕ-the wealth. Through meditation they can earn and can distribute spiritual wealth. So this is possible, to perceive peace within and peace outside.

Interviewer: 2000 years ago Jesus was born, and the year 2000 is going to happen. It seems to me like something magical is going to happen.

Swami Prajnanananda Giri: You are thinking of 2004 years after, but it is GodÕs creation. God loves creation. God loves every human being equally. God has no partiality. God wants that every child of His to be more beautiful, and I believe every day more and more beautiful people, more and more beauty, harmony, love will be there. And if it is 2004 years after that even, it will be a more beautiful world, full of love, not chaos.

Interviewer: Swamiji, with Christmas coming up, how do you celebrate that holiday?

Swami Prajnanananda Giri: For the last two years, I have been in Vienna for Christmas, so we celebrated Christmas and the New Year with eight days of intensive meditation on Jesus, focusing on perceiving the Christ-consciousness and the love of Jesus within the self. We spent the days reading from the Bible and meditating on the real meaning of the passages. Although Jesus was technically born in Bethlehem, Jesus should also be born within you. If Christ-consciousness is not born within you, then celebrating Christmas just to get together and greet each other is not the real Christmas. The real Christmas is to feel Jesus will be born within you and your body. To perceive Christ within you, to perceive love of Christ-this we celebrate.

We celebrate from December 24th until January 1st. Many people are not aware of why they celebrate the 1st of January, the New Year. Do you know why? My understanding is that on the 8th day after the birth of Jesus he was presented in the temple. So, he was born, at night on the 24th and on the 1st of January, the 8th day afterward, he was presented in the temple, and named Jesus. Jesus means "the Savior," and Jesus is the Christ-consciousness within you. If you perceive him, then you are saved. You will perceive constant peace and love. By naming the child Jesus, a new era of perceiving truth and love started. This is the New Year according to our understanding. The New Year should bring a new life to you - a life in God, a life in truth, a life in purity, a life of love, a life in Jesus, a life in Christmas. You should treat every day as the New Year; you should not wait another 365 or 366 days for the New Year to come again. Every moment the world is changing. Every day is new, every moment is new, and every breath is new. God is changing your cells and every part of the body continuously. God is making you new. So, the objective is to perceive the newness, to perceive the new in every moment is New Year. So I love God, and every moment is the New Year to me. I do not wait.

Interviewer: Thank you very much, Swamiji, for being on the program today!